He wraps his arms
Tightly around her shoulders
Willing her tears to stop
Telling her
Without words
How much he loves her

And it works
As it always does

She stops crying
As he cups her cheeks
In his rough hands
And looks deeply
Into her
With his soulful
Blue
Eyes

He takes her left hand in his
And pulls the towel
Off of her wrist
Praying
That there is no blood

But once again
His prayers are not answered
And she begins to cry again
As he catches
The first glimpse
Of the
Brand
New
Crimson
Cuts

He dries the blood
And washes her wrist
As she watches
Wondering
How in the world
She found a boy
Who loved her
Despite her own
Self-loathing

He takes her wrist
To his lips
And kisses her many scars
Hushing her sobs
And whispering
Sweet nothings
Without even the slightest word

He pulls her
Once again in his arms
And hugs her close.
She listens carefully,
Memorizing his heartbeat,
Thanking God
For giving her
A reason
To keep on living

And just as he knew she would,
She falls asleep
Clutching his shirt
As if he were
A cloud
That could so easily
Float away

He takes these
Few quiet moments
To himself
And prays

He prays for this beautiful girl
Who is so lost
And so broken

He prays for her family
Who have done nothing
But cause her pain
And push her deeper
Into
Her
Hateful
Mind

But most of all
He prays for himself
He prays for the strength
To keep this girl alive
He prays for the courage
To fight off her demons
And he prays for the grace
To fix her

But once again
His prayers are not answered